[gixxerwimp]

Somebody came back to Taiwan from the US with an HA-2 and put it up for sale. I called him a bit too late, as someone was already booked to look at it today. Hopefully that person won't buy it and I can check it out in real life. Too bad I don't have anything other than my DT 1350s and ER-4Ps to test it with.

 

[love to listen]

Very happy with the oppo ha-2 and edition 8 compo. Can't beleive how much I spent on a pimped out desktop amp from headroom, when the oppo combo isn't far off. Nice job, Oppo!!

 

[x RELIC x]

Which E12 do you have?
http://www.fiio.net/en/products/33/comparisons
The E12A @ 420 mW (16 Ω/THD[COLOR=666666]+N[/COLOR]<1%) looks similar in power output to the HA-2. The E12 @ 880 mW (32 Ω/THD[COLOR=666666]+N[/COLOR]<1%) looks to have way more power than the HA-2. Would you say you like to listen to your music loud?

I have to agree with this. I have the e12 and it drives my 60 Ohm, 91db/1 mW LCD-2 on low gain (volume knob at 3/4) pretty well. On high gain it's a joy ride. It's ultimately not the sweetest sounding amp, but for driving power it would be more than enough for the HE-560's. I don't imagine the HA-2 would be enough given that it's around 1/4 the driving power but then again I haven't listened to it.

 

[tarainfo]

  I disagree those lossy AACs can't be true DSD... trash in--> Trash out... ti's the same lossy file but padded bits to 0... it may work with Lossless ALAC files tough

I won't disagree with you technically. However I have listened to those same music files directly by headphone connected to the phone, by airplay thru a quality amp
and even with the HA-2 playng thru the itune app on the phone and they never sounded this good
They may not match an original DSD recording but unfortunately most of my music is still in these low res formats and they actually sound good right now on both
Senn 600 and Oppo Pm-1 thru this connection of the Onkyo HF ios application playing thru the PM-2 in DOP format

 

[Dcun201]

How is this compare to the Fiio E18? I am considering picking this up and selling my e18 off if its a big upgrade in sound. 

 

[cristobalroy]

  How is this compare to the Fiio E18? I am considering picking this up and selling my e18 off if its a big upgrade in sound. 

I have E18 and  I gave it to my brother, I have HA-2, its very big step up sir. You will not regret  having one.

 

[gerelmx1986]

I won't disagree with you technically. However I have listened to those same music files directly by headphone connected to the phone, by airplay thru a quality amp
and even with the HA-2 playng thru the itune app on the phone and they never sounded this good
They may not match an original DSD recording but unfortunately most of my music is still in these low res formats and they actually sound good right now on both
Senn 600 and Oppo Pm-1 thru this connection of the Onkyo HF ios application playing thru the PM-2 in DOP format

All my music is 16/44.1 FLAC and some hi-res 24-bit up to 192KHz, no DSD still.. but yeah i agree with you I had an iPod classic and it sounded bad with ALACs converted from the same FLAC files mentioned above, aside that i-devices can't play more than 24/48...
 
I got a fiio X3 when my iPod died and while it sounded good it had some defects in imaging and accuracy of pinpoint of voices and trebble'ish instruments... then it got bricked during a FW upfate LOL and had to get a Sony A17 Hi-res walkman and Oh boy this thing is so great, my 16/44.1's never sounded so damn Good, and has the capacity of the Classic 64GB internal + 128GB microSDXC
 
Now i want the Oppo HA-2 for powering more my little walkman which produces lowly 10mW + 10mW.... according to some guys here and sony specs... imho too LOW... seems oppo will deliver to be reserved i will lower a bit for 40-Ohm (my cans are that Ohm number) 18 times the power than the sony walkman

 

[Sonic Defender]

   
Which E12 do you have?
http://www.fiio.net/en/products/33/comparisons
The E12A @ 420 mW (16 Ω/THD+N<1%) looks similar in power output to the HA-2. The E12 @ 880 mW (32 Ω/THD+N<1%) looks to have way more power than the HA-2. Would you say you like to listen to your music loud?

Yes, I do listen at fairly loud levels (shorter periods of time mind you). My main concern/point is that any amplifier starts to perform to it's lowest ability level once it is pushed to the max, and certainly over prolonged periods of time. So to me yes, you can use the E12 for instance to drive the 560s, but it will not be at it's best when you have it turned all the way up, I don't think that is a controversial position to take. So again, if you like to have moderate to loud playback volume, and you listen to very demanding music (consistent high amplitude, little dynamic range) the amp at max or close to max is not going to perform as well as circuitry spec'd to have headroom left over. My E12 is about 1.5 years old, so the generation with the newer bass boost (not that I use bass boost myself).

 

[x RELIC x]

Yes, I do listen at fairly loud levels (shorter periods of time mind you). My main concern/point is that any amplifier starts to perform to it's lowest ability level once it is pushed to the max, and certainly over prolonged periods of time. So to me yes, you can use the E12 for instance to drive the 560s, but it will not be at it's best when you have it turned all the way up, I don't think that is a controversial position to take. So again, if you like to have moderate to loud playback volume, and you listen to very demanding music (consistent high amplitude, little dynamic range) the amp at max or close to max is not going to perform as well as circuitry spec'd to have headroom left over. My E12 is about 1.5 years old, so the generation with the newer bass boost (not that I use bass boost myself).

I don't want to criticize anyone for their listening habits, and of course we all have individual preferences, but I would caution listening to those volumes consistently. Full volume on the e12 through the HE-560 will put out A LOT of decibels. Over time this WILL damage a persons hearing. As a fellow lover of music I am just saying....... Take care of your hearing.

Out of curiosity, did you try the high gain on the e12? That would easily drive the HE-560 to the point where most people couldn't stand it at more than half on the volume pot, and as mentioned before the HA-2 has around 1/4 the output power of the e12 so it would not help your quest for more power.

Reading your post where it says ”very demanding music (consistent high amplitude, little dynamic range)" I'm led to beleive the problem is your source files and no amp on the market will fix the quality of clipped dynamic range. Not the e12 or the HA-2 no matter what volume you're at (especially loud). Actually it would be the opposite and the better amps will reveal the poor dynamic range, clipping, and distortions present in such music.

 

[Dcun201]

I don't want to criticize anyone for their listening habits, and of course we all have individual preferences, but I would caution listening to those volumes consistently. Full volume on the e12 through the HE-560 will put out A LOT of decibels. Over time this WILL damage a persons hearing. As a fellow lover of music I am just saying....... Take care of your hearing.

Out of curiosity, did you try the high gain on the e12? That would easily drive the HE-560 to the point where most people couldn't stand it at more than half on the volume pot, and as mentioned before the HA-2 has around 1/4 the output power of the e12 so it would not help your quest for more power.

Reading your post where it says ”very demanding music (consistent high amplitude, little dynamic range)" I'm led to beleive the problem is your source files and no amp on the market will fix the quality of clipped dynamic range. Not the e12 or the HA-2 no matter what volume you're at (especially loud). Actually it would be the opposite and the better amps will reveal the poor dynamic range, clipping, and distortions present in such music.

I have to agree with Relic about listening to music at a high decibel level.  I used to listen to loud music all the time when I was younger and now my ears are getting more sensitive it. I have to turn down the volume a bit especially if I am using headphones and IEMs.  Sigh the joy of aging.

 

[AudioMan2013]

Just curious - has anyone opened their  HA-2 to see the internals?  I haven't found any pics on the web. 

 

[miceblue]

Just curious - has anyone opened their  HA-2 to see the internals?  I haven't found any pics on the web. 

I think it would very hard to do. The leather cover protects the way you get into the HA-2, presumably, and it's attached to the HA-2 with a strong adhesive. If you want to get to the inside, you would probably have to destroy that cover, and even if you do so I don't know what's underneath it. For all I know, it could require some specialised screwdrivers to open it up like those star ones found on MacBooks. XD

 

[Sonic Defender]

I don't want to criticize anyone for their listening habits, and of course we all have individual preferences, but I would caution listening to those volumes consistently. Full volume on the e12 through the HE-560 will put out A LOT of decibels. Over time this WILL damage a persons hearing. As a fellow lover of music I am just saying....... Take care of your hearing.

Out of curiosity, did you try the high gain on the e12? That would easily drive the HE-560 to the point where most people couldn't stand it at more than half on the volume pot, and as mentioned before the HA-2 has around 1/4 the output power of the e12 so it would not help your quest for more power.

Reading your post where it says ”very demanding music (consistent high amplitude, little dynamic range)" I'm led to beleive the problem is your source files and no amp on the market will fix the quality of clipped dynamic range. Not the e12 or the HA-2 no matter what volume you're at (especially loud). Actually it would be the opposite and the better amps will reveal the poor dynamic range, clipping, and distortions present in such music.

No I had the E12 at full on high gain, I don't remember it being loud at all. What I meant is that if you have very demanding files playing, they demand more from the amplifier so assuming a user was happy with the volume and sound quality, all else being equal (including listening SPL), an amp built to supply 800mw at 32ohm would work less hard and operate cleaner than an amp that supplied say 120mw at the same resistance. At least that has always been my understanding. As you approach the upper operating threshold of an amplifier performance degradation will increase. Hence having a little gas left in the tank isn't a bad thing. Perhaps I either misunderstood this or I am over-simplifying things, but I believe in a nutshell this is correct, but I am no expert and do not pretend to be one. 

 

[x RELIC x]

No I had the E12 at full on high gain, I don't remember it being loud at all. What I meant is that if you have very demanding files playing, they demand more from the amplifier so assuming a user was happy with the volume and sound quality, all else being equal (including listening SPL), an amp built to supply 800mw at 32ohm would work less hard and operate cleaner than an amp that supplied say 120mw at the same resistance. At least that has always been my understanding. As you approach the upper operating threshold of an amplifier performance degradation will increase. Hence having a little gas left in the tank isn't a bad thing. Perhaps I either misunderstood this or I am over-simplifying things, but I believe in a nutshell this is correct, but I am no expert and do not pretend to be one. 

You are correct about pushing the amp too hard, but I really question whether the db level you are listening to is healthy. The e12 is clean and using high gain with the HE-560 is pushing your hearing to the limits, not the amp. You have to be over 100db at those volumes and that should only be listened to for a maximum of 15 minutes or you seriously risk hearing damage.

I don't want to de-rail the HA-2 thread but I feel this is important for everyone to be aware of. Please read this brief article on the subject as far too many people are unaware of the mechanisms of the ear and they expose their ears to damage without realizing it until it's too late.

http://www.dangerousdecibels.org/education/information-center/noise-induced-hearing-loss/

Also a quick chart for exposure time to loud sounds. Most MP3 players with easy to drive headphones create volumes of around 120db. Using the e12 on high gain at full volume to the HE-560 is just nuts. Play now, pay later!



Edit: Also, demanding music is usually considered as complex with many instruments, not poorly compressed dynamics. The better the amp the worse a poorly compressed track will sound, no matter the headroom in the amp, and especially at louder volume.

 

[miceblue]

OPPO reps in the beta forums posted power output levels with THD+N numbers. I don't think the performance of the amp of the HA-2 with the listed specs is something you guys need to worry about and the calculations I did earlier should still be well within good reason (as in the amp shouldn't perform poorly even at the provided power outputs).

Usually power output levels are set at 1% THD+N, which in retrospect is still pretty low.